The earphones of the prior art have been designed to deliver sound near or directly into the auditory canal at the exclusion of ambient sounds and noise. The purpose is to allow the wearer to listen to the selected speech, communication, or music undistracted and undisturbed by the environment. The shutting out of the ambient sounds and noise is accomplished by means of a muff that tightly surrounds the ear, by delivering the sound directly through a plug inserted into the auditory canal, such as the so-called “earbud” speaker, or by incorporating a speaker in a muff or helmet shell over or in front of each of the wearer's ears.
One of the problems associated with the delivery of sound either directly into the auditory canal or very close to it is a loss of sound fidelity. The pinna of each ear is configured to collect and direct sound into the auditory canal. Its twists and folds enhance high frequency sounds and help us to determine the location of the sound source. In a concert hall setting, we sense the music through vibrations that impact the entire bone structure surrounding the ear. Speakers inserted into the ear bypass these conditioning and sensing elements depriving the audiophile of a whole spectrum of auditory sensations.
More significantly, it has been suspected that the use of earbuds and other ear-inserted sound delivery devices pose a serious risk of hearing loss. A recent survey commissioned by the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association revealed that more than half of high school students in the United States reported at least one symptom of hearing loss due to too-loud and too-long use of MP3 and other types of music players using ear-inserted devices. It has been suggested that the devices that project the sound directly into the auditory canal are too harsh on the sensory cells, and that prolonged exposure to those harsh sounds are causing irreversible damage to the auditory organs.
Automobilists are often frustrated by a pedestrian or jogger wearing earphones who stays on the pavement in front of them because he cannot hear the incoming traffic due to the exclusory character of his earphones. In the past, if the user of a listening device had to also be able to hear ambient conversations and other sounds, he will be provided with only one earphone, forsaking the possibility of hearing stereophonic arrangements.
The prior art personal listening devices are also very conspicuous, unwieldy, cumbersome, and quite unsanitary.
The instant invention results from an attempt to eliminate the aforesaid problems and disadvantages associated with current listening devices, by offering a new generation of personal sound delivery apparatuses that do not obstruct the auditory canal or muffle ambient sounds, yet provide a reasonable degree of privacy and create a more natural musical environment.
With the advent of the extremely compact personal music players, a whole generation of audiophiles has become accustomed to work and play in a continuous private music environment delivered by the ubiquitous ear appendages constituted by earbud speakers. The invention offers elegant and safe methods and devices to listen to music the way it should be heard as an “around” sound, without shutting out the surrounding world or causing damage to one's hearing system.